Many safety lockout devices are provided for restricting access to equipment and control instruments, including, for example, electrical components, such as switches, dials and push buttons, and fluid system components, such as valves and pressure regulators. Industrial and commercial equipment are often provided with or assembled with a key-operated lockout mechanism (e.g., a locking bracket and padlock or similar structure) to facilitate the restriction of access to or operation of the equipment.
In some applications, the authorization of multiple technicians or other authorized personnel is required to allow access to, or operation of, a locked out system or piece of equipment, for example, to comply with established safety procedures. In such an application, the use of multiple keys controlled by multiple users may be required to unlock the one or more lockout mechanisms to place the equipment in an operable condition.